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You don't blame him for nothing. You seem to be so pro-Smith that it truly feels that you wouldn't support the team without him. Hence why I said you have your mind made up when it comes to Smith, as do I. I know you say you would do a Drummond trade, but how would you feel if Ferry just let him walk this summer for nothing?

That is wrong! Dude that's a cop out because the numbers don't support your point. You and it's not just you, lots of Hawks fans want to blame him for everything and because I don't, you act as if I'm not a Hawks fan. You guys have been calling him a bad team mate, that's funny every interview ex-Hawks and current Hawks give sy he's a good one. Lou even said playing alongside Josh was a big reason for him coming here.

Stick with what the report says happened without trying to add meaning to it.

I would trade Smith in other moves, just not for some of the trash being thrown out there.

If Ferry lets him walk, I would feel better about that than trading him for trash, or bad contracts.

Expiring back-up PG for a playoff run. They are trading Gay for cap room, getting a young Ross and cap space is a good deal. Raps want Gay. Cavs like Smith, well Gilbert does. And we would get a young prospect that is having a good rookie year.

I like it for the Cavs. Irving could do a lot for Smith's game. Smith could do a lot for their defense. I do'nt like it for the other teams, including the Hawks.

No it's not.... Just trying to get you to see what you are saying. So now this team isn't full of vets?

First you say we play better without Smith. While that maybe your opinion, I'm just trying to get you to see the larger sample size says you are wrong.

Then you asked when does JT get 11 Assist when Smith plays? I proved it happens. JT is not the kind of playmaker that's going to have the big asst nights on the regular bases. That has nothing to do with Smith.

If Ferry seeks or wants to trade him, so be it. But getting Asik back in return would not be a good trade for the Hawks. I like Gay, but he is way over paid, wouldn't want him either.

If Det had interest in Josh for Drummond, Day, and their 1rst this year, that I would be willing to do!

So you don't think trading for Asik and let Horford move to his natural position be good? I thought we could become beastly. Maybe not?

Only thing I see a problem with trading Smith is I think it would lesson our chance of landing D12 next year...

So you don't think trading for Asik and let Horford move to his natural position be good? I thought we could become beastly. Maybe not?

Only thing I see a problem with trading Smith is I think it would lesson our chance of landing D12 next year...

No, I don't think Asik is that good , I just think he's solid and I've listed my concerns before with AL defensively at the 4. He's done nothing to cure those concerns with his play defensively at the 4 this season. Offensively, I think he would put up around the same numbers with a small dip in fg%. His rebounding would possibly improve at the 4. I think Asik is a solid player but Smith has more worth. WIth Asik's lack of foot speed and Horford having a more dificult time defensively with more athletic 4's I think we would give up to many points and fouls on the inside. Offensively we could possibly be better with Horford being a better mid-rang shooter than Smith. Our rebounding could be great. But over all the problems we'd face defensively IMHO wouldn't make us a better team.

Judging by this who would you rather have, these "facts" are out there?

Smith clearly as we have seen over the years has some off the wall talent, but to this point and of course you can read into these stats however you want to is that neither one of our PF's are untouchable. So my thing is what is your preference???

I don't feel that Josh is the golden key to DH or CP3, but i am not blind to say that it wouldn't hurt. To me if CP3 told DH, let's go to Atlanta where you can have a All-Star center, and a bevy of shooters around us, with prolly a new coach and a slowing becoming strong front office. Sam Mitchell once said that you can't coach potential and in certain cases its very true. Let me reiterate, Horford can go for the RIGHT deal also just as Josh can go for the RIGHT deal. I am just constantly surprised by the assumption that Smith is head and shoulders above Horford when clearly both are about the same with different highs and lows. Its that simple really.

Here's all I care about: The Hawks are 22-16 now, TWENTY-TWO AND SIXTEEN, in the thick of the playoff race, with a shot at hosting a series. So why is this **** even happening? They're not 7-28, they're not the ****ing Wizards. It looks stupid when any player does some dumb **** that will gets him suspended by his own team. How silly does that make everyone involved look? Said the same thing when Ivan got suspended. Everyone should expect, no, DEMAND better from Josh. Period. We've won without him, and we've won with Al... which leads to the most important point: No one in this organization is irreplaceable. All I want is wins and eventually a damn championship, that's all any fan of this team should care about.

“I told you guys our practice on Tuesday was the best one all year and I think we came out and showed why,” Horford said. “Our focus was better and we just have to keep that up.”

“We just needed a win,” Harris said. “Guys were willing to do whatever it took to get the win. Obviously everybody were embarrassed by the effort we gave last game. We definitely wanted to come out and play harder.”

“I think we are pro enough, we are smart enough, we have been in the league until time to realize when we play this way, good things happen,” Pachulia said. “We just have to find that energy, keep that energy, run and play the way we did today.”

“There is no different style,” Drew said of playing without Smith. “We put emphasis on pace and getting out and running. I think tonight we did a terrific job at that. Tonight, we were good. We were good tonight. With Josh, we are better. That is just the bottom line. It will be good to get Josh back tomorrow and I’m glad it’s not a situation where he will be out another game because we missed him tonight. Our guys responded tonight.”

“As far as the game, it was great to be back and see some of the guys and have some fun but my main goal was to come in here and get a win,” said [Joe] Johnson, who was booed every time he touched the ball. “It kind of hurts because it seems like from the start we just weren’t really into it tonight. We knew (the Hawks) weren’t going to let me play. We knew they were going to trap me every time I caught the ball. We just didn’t seem to make the right reads.”

They obviously play faster and more crisp without Josh because he dominates the ball and tries to do too much. What Drew is saying is Josh needs to buy into what the rest of this group is built to do, and yes I agree with that. He will never say they are better without Josh or anyone else -- we know Drew doesn't have the cojones or job security to act tough about any player.

(1) He doesn't attack the rim enough to draw fouls (neither does Al or anyone else, but Josh handles the basketball more than anyone so the burden is on him. A player who handles it the most on any team has to get to the line as much as possible).

(2) He doesn't help on the offensive glass enough because he stays out of the perimeter trying to facilitate, when that is supposed to be Teague's (or Lou's or Devin's) job. They don't have much size on the wing as is, and that's one huge reason why the Hawks keep getting outrebounded even by inferior teams like Detroit.

(3) Even though he is an exceptional passer, his ballstopping often slows down the game and makes it boring because he doesn't make quick decisions/moves to get his shot. This roster is built to run and kick out to shooters, not slow half-court ball. That's what Drew is talking about "We put emphasis on pace and getting out and running." and he's absolutely right.

I can't speak for anyone else but I do not have a vendetta against Josh. I am tough on the highest paid players on all of my teams. You see how often I got into arguments with Braves forum posters when I kept criticizing Chipper Jones? They get all sensitive but I say all of this stuff because I want the best for my teams, it's never personal. I always expect the most from the guys who are supposed to be leaders, and with the Hawks that falls on Josh. I remember you were upset when Ivan got himself suspended also so this Josh situation should piss you off even more since he's clearly one of your favorite players. If he wants to be know as a leader, he can't act like this and must take responsibility for whatever it is he isn't doing himself. This is what he signed up for when he wanted to be named a captain. Like I said, the team still has a solid record so this kind of nonsense shouldn't even be happening.

Hawks forward Josh Smith spoke exclusively with the Atlanta Journal-Constitution on Thursday upon returing from his one-game suspension for conduct detrimental to the team. Here is a Q&A of the interview:

Q. Will you tell me what happened? What is your reaction to the suspension?

A. It is what it is. It’s over and done with. Me personally, this is my ninth year and people are going to get into debates all the time. I don’t necessarily have to agree with the verdict or decision they made. It is what it is. I just have to look forward now and playing with a clear head and not worrying about any distractions other than basketball.

Q. Is it fair to say that the incident was brought about my frustration?

A. Everybody is passionate. Everybody handles situations differently. I think everybody was frustrated and the pot was almost overfilling. Things happen. Things were said. It is what it is. At the end of the day it’s over and I have to focus on just improving myself on the floor and being more efficient and continue to be a better person, a better me.

Q. Did you watch the game you missed and what are your thoughts about how the team played?

A. We’ve been pretty good at home. We came out with a lot of enthusiasm and energy. Maybe what happened in practice sparked a plug as far as motivation is concerned. They ran the ball extremely well. I think we were very unselfish last night and we had a big win.

Q. You play the Nets again Friday. Can you be that different wrinkle that shows the Nets something different?

A. There is going to be a different dynamic that is going to be on the floor by adding me, they are probably going to play certain coverages differently. I’m anticipating a better performance out of the Brooklyn Nets and hopefully we can continue this success. I know it’s a one-game winning streak but it starts with one game. That’s how it begins. Hopefully we can keep it going.

ajc

His response to the first question doesn't have the same tone and outlook as the statement attributed to him after the suspension was announced. We'll see how it goes from here.